The world’s largest wind farm this week became the wind farm that wasn’t. Billionaire Oilman, T. Boone Pickens, who has generally championed the cause of energy independence for the United States and specifically promised to build the largest wind farm in the world this past week said he was putting his plans on hold because of the global recession with its tight credit markets and lower natural gas prices.

You would think he’d want to build now with so many out of work and ready to pitch in. With gas prices dropping once again, it might be the best time to buy materials which would have to be shipped in to the Texas Panhandle, where he planned to position the energy producing turbines.

But that credit crunch apparently is hitting even the wealthy. Pickens could not find financing to pay for the transmission lines that would hook up his wind farm to the Texas grid to carry away the electricity produced in Pampa, Texas.

Meantime, offshore developers face a similar problem. They need to find customers to buy their power and must do so before they can get financing to build. The government just gave out leases for offshore production. But those would-be “farmers” must also navigate the federal permit process, which hasn’t been tested so far. Construction on even the most promising projects in Rhode Island, along with those in Delaware and New Jersey, won't begin for at least four years.

It all sounds pretty dismal, doesn’t it? And on the surface, it’s a bit disappointing, but think of it in terms of where we were on this subject one year ago. I think you’ll agree we’ve “come a long way baby” and we’re starting to get a handle on things.

T. Boone Pickens and his blustery, bluffing pals put wind farms back on the horizon. They moved up the public discussion about the projects. The Obama administration favors such production and we now know that we have to start moving towards greater energy efficiency, domestic production and cleaner, most environmentally friendly production. We’re heading that direction with a strong tailwind behind us.

"We've got more wind than anybody else in the world, just like they have more oil," Pickens said at the time. "I think that's the future of this country."

We know we’ve got to get on it. We still hope for the best, but the economic wind needs to pick up.

Have you given thought to how to best approach potential customers with your greenification? Someone out there has. A new study by the Shelton Group checked consumer opinions of marketing claims to find that survey respondents identified most with the “100 percent natural” claim.

The researchers tested various claims including “organic,” “all natural ingredients,” “certified organic ingredients,” “bio-based ingredients,” and “contains natural ingredients,” to find that “100 percent natural” was the claim that attracts consumers and makes them feel most comfortable.

The Shelton study was conducted this year, in April and May, with surveyors questioning 1006 respondents. Also reported in the same survey are the facts about what consumers are looking for:

Home cleaning products — 75 percent

Food and beverages — 65 percent

Personal care products (shampoo, lotion, etc.) - 55 percent

These are mostly personal products that consumers come in contact with on a regular, or even sometimes, daily basis. But past studies have also shown that modern consumers are drawn to prefer “100 percent natural” products in almost every line of wholesale and retail trade, and that they are willing to pay more for such products.

And why not? A greener house may initially cost a bit more, but if it falls in line with better home construction practices and provides greater energy efficiency, it may save money over the course of the home’s ownership. The same goes for other products, from business and office machines, to home appliances and even foods, which are often believed to be more nutritious and healthier to consume.

The Shelton group says 60% of consumers are seeking out green product and an even larger percentage say they are not cutting green spending, even in this difficult economy. Green marketing is here to stay, so why not put the best foot forward? Go 100 percent natural and see if consumers “greenify” your returns.

I have been shopping for home goods lately, and am greatly impressed by the moves that have been made in the “green housewares” market. I am in the process of setting up a new home, far from where I used to live. At times, I wonder what would shrink my carbon footprint most: to move my housewares (currently in storage on one coast) to the other coast where I have moved myself; or to simply donate them to the local mission and start anew at my latest residence.

So here I am: going from store to store, looking at things that I have previously purchased and now see new and much more sustainably manufactured.

Cutting boards are made of bamboo; so are bookcases. I love the look of bamboo, but even more do I love the sustainability. Bamboo is a wood that grows straight up and increases in size at an astronomical rate. It has a clean look about it that I am reassured by research on the internet is absolutely accurate: it is cleanly grown and produced, sustainable, and an ecologically sound choice.

I’ve also seen lamps that are now being sold with the new CFL light bulbs already in them. Compact fluorescent light bulbs produce so much light using so little energy that it’s a delight to see them in stores.

I’m also going to need a new printer on this side of the country. I want to purchase a small one, since I truly hope to move my old (still very serviceable) printer/scanner/fax/copier to this side of the country and continue using it. I hope to be able to use that machine for a full 10 years before I even consider replacing it. It’s halfway there now and I appreciate it more every day I am without it, so I will consider buying a smaller printer, utilizing a print shop for other services, and giving the smaller printer to a relative when the larger, older one arrives.

I’m fascinated by all the aspects of a green household that I’m finding in stores. It seems my choices are greater than ever. I hope you’re spotting (and plotting!) the ways to Greenify your own household. If you’ve got a tip, please email it to us (info@greenbusinessalliance.com) so that we can all share the knowledge and grow greener together.

Are you Greenifying in advance of summer? Time to get ready for the heat waves before they hit! And it needn’t be expensive. In fact, it should save you some cash over time.

First off, how old is that A/C unit? Running your air conditioner this summer can be one of your business’ biggest expenses. But there are ways to increase energy efficiency and lower your energy bills. How old is your air-conditioning unit? Is it energy efficient? Federal minimum efficiency standards for room air conditioners were revised in October, 2000. That means if it may need to be replaced.

Also, do you have a programmable thermostat? These are relatively inexpensive and easy to install devices that allow you to program both air conditioning and heat to comfort levels when you and customers are in the office, but turn them down for energy efficiency when business hours are over.

Check for whether caulking needs updating. You’d be surprised how much expensive cold air can leak out of small cracks and crevices. You’ll be even more surprised how much energy a $4 tube of caulk can save.

Go old school. If you have curtains or blinds, shut them when the sun is shining through your windows. Blocking the sunshine out will keep out a measure of the heat and allow for savings.

When people say, "it's not the heat, it's the humidity," they are right. If you have a dehumidifier, turn it on when the temperature rises. Getting rid of the humidity will help make business feel more comfortable.

Also, get a fan. Sometimes, all you really need is some movement in the air. An overhead fan is the most thorough way to circulate air, but you may want portable fans to allow you to focus the movement. And where possible, open the front and back door. Circulating the air all the way through can help alleviate humidity and feeling of closeness.

The heat is coming. Take a few moments now to make sure you can stay as comfortable and green as possible.

This blog doesn't endorse TV programs or products, but did you see the Academy Awards Sunday night? Right in the middle of it all was a commercial (or two) for Apple
Computer's new laptop. It's got a 17 inch screen, gorgeous resolution, is ultra-lightweight and all those other usual super "Apple" technological improvements that we've done to love and expect.

But this commercial bragged about something else. It bragged about the battery. It seems this battery can be charged to last as much as eight full hours on one plug-in. And it can be recharged about 1000 times. The advertisement pointed out that's three times the battery life that one normally gets for the ever-popular laptops that seem to be powering our businesses and lives these days.

Now, we're not suggesting that you run right out and buy an Apple 17-inch laptop. That would be very expensive (Nobody said they were cheap; they start at over $2000 each) and also defeat that wonderful Greenifying aspect of the computer, namely fewer laptops and batteries in our landfills. No, keep using the one you have until the very end of its life.

It's just nice to see that companies are starting to get it. They get that there's an alternative, Greenifying laptop computer choice out on the market right now. And chances are, by the time that you are ready to replace or upgrade what you are working with now, all the other computer companies will be offering similar long-lasting chargeables with extra-long battery life, too. And the prices will probably come down, as well.

It's good to see companies offering ways to Greenify businesses. It's great to see that they understand that being “environmentally sound” is a marketable, advertise-able benefit that will bring in sales. And it'll be even better when everybody gets in the Greenification game on that aspect of doing business.

As you’re working on Greenifying your home and business, do you think about it as you toss another load of clothes from the washer into the dryer? You might have to go to the hardware store and special order them, but clothespins and the clothesline used to be the most basic and utilitarian components of a backyard.

When Americans finally got a chicken in every pot and a washer and dryer in every home, clotheslines began to represent poverty. A laundry line in the backyard was the norm in the 1970’s, but in the last 20 years became “just something that the lower classes did.” Communities outlawed them for the negative connotation that they offered to passersby.

In doing so, it’s almost impossible to calculate how much energy has been used to dry clothes. And most of those clothes could have been just easily and far more energy efficiently dried on a clothesline. Did you know that dryers are by far the most wasteful appliance in the house, gobbling up 6% of your electric bill?

Now, a group calling itself “Project Laundry List” is successfully lobbying state governments to allow you to dry your duds any way you wish. So far, Florida, Utah, and Colorado have all supported "right-to-dry" laws. Change is in the wind, along with a lot more sheets, socks and underwear.

And just so you are aware, here are some clothes-conscious facts. Hanging your clothes on a line to dry is better for them. Colors linger longer, giving your clothes a longer life. The fabric holds up longer--dryer lint, after all, is nothing but a thin layer that has been sheared from your clothes. The high heat of a dryer can also play havoc with the size of your clothes, so that something with a perfect fit comes out misshapen or, worse, six sizes smaller.

So this year’s big push to Greenify might see you looking in grandma’s closet. Keep searching, because grandma never throws out anything, including her clothespins.

What has you feeling most concerned: Greenifying the environment or the state of our economy? A recent poll shows for most Americans, worries about jobs and the economy outweigh their concern about environmental issues.

According to the latest survey by the Pew Research Center, strengthening the nation’s economy and improving the jobs situation now rank as the two top priorities by a respective 85 and 82 percent of those surveyed.

In the jobs category, this is up 21 points since the previous version of this same polling material, one year ago.

As a category, “protecting the environment” fell 15 points on our national worry list in the past year. While it’s still a top priority with 41 percent of voters, that’s down from 56 percent in the past 12 months.

There is still concern about the energy debate, with 60 percent of Americans calling it a “top priority.” Energy prices and the need for independence from fossil fuels has risen steadily for the past six years beginning in 2002, when the poll found 42 percent cited energy concerns as a top issue.

While the poll shows that some voters are less concerned about the environment and more concerned about the economy, it should be noted that the mood among those surveyed seems to be a group concern. That obviously not everyone polled is unemployed, therefore they are being concerned about their fellow man, which ought to be a prime concern of all of us.

The survey also showed that while a growing number of us are worried about the economy, there is attention being paid to the economic benefits that clean energy systems can provide, with a growing number of home and business-owners having first-hand knowledge of those good qualities because they’ve already begun to Greenify.

Our new President of the United States seems very bent on Greenifying all of us. This week, he’ll direct federal regulators to move quickly on an application by California and 13 other states to set strict automobile emission and fuel efficiency standards, according to administration officials.

This latest action makes good on an Obama campaign pledge and at the same time, reverses Bush administration policy. Granting California and the other states the right to regulate tailpipe emissions would be one of the most emphatic actions Mr. Obama could take to quickly put his stamp on environmental policy. He’s also removing his predecessor’s efforts which markedly expanded our carbon footprint.

The Bush administration rejected California’s previous application. EPA regulators are now expected to reverse that order after completing a formal review process.

Once they act, automobile manufacturers will quickly have to retool to begin producing and selling cars and trucks that get higher mileage than the national standard, and on a faster phase-in schedule. The auto companies have lobbied hard against the regulations and challenged them in court. Not surprisingly, environmental groups are thrilled.

“This is a complete reversal of President Bush’s policy of censoring or ignoring global warming science,” said Daniel J. Weiss, director of climate strategy at the Center for American Progress in Washington. “With the fuel economy measures and clean energy investments in the recovery package, President Obama has done more in one week to reduce oil dependence and global warming than George Bush did in eight years.”

In this week’s action, Mr. Obama will order temporary regulations to be put in place by March so automakers have enough time to retool for vehicles sold in 2011. Final standards for later years will be determined by a separate process.

The next part for you and I will be stepping up and buying these new vehicles in support of their stricter standards. The new standards don’t work until someone starts using them to Greenify.

Could Greenifying the planet be as simple as using fresh air to cool your data center? If that statement is true, it may also Greenify your company's bottom line.

Ok, we're oversimplifying, but improving our environment is a step-by-step process. Companies that use natural air to cool their facilities often see huge benefits on both the environmental end and the bottom line. IT experts, analysts and environmentalists say there are plenty of opportunities for tech organizations to create more Earth-friendly operations, cut their energy needs and slash their carbon footprint, all while saving money.

A recent survey of IT executives showed a little reluctance on the part of some leaders. Nearly half (42%) said their IT departments have no plans to launch projects in the next 12 months to reduce energy consumption or carbon emissions, and nearly three quarters reported no plans to create committees to oversee energy-saving initiatives. Those are delays which may force them to play catch up down the road.

"The green issue is not going to go away. There's too much at stake," says Rakesh Kumar, a Gartner Inc. analyst.

That's not to say IT leaders don't have their reasons for staying away from green computing. Kumar says some of them think it's a fad. And others, even among the educated and informed, believe global warming is a hoax and that there's no need to act on the issue, or they see green as merely increasing expenses. It's time for those ideas to be updated along with energy usage patterns.

Increasingly, however, IT leaders and other executives are putting aside such concerns and pushing for green IT initiatives.

In the September 2008 "U.S. Green IT Survey" by IDC, the market research firm, 44% of the respondents said that IT plays a very important role in their organizations' efforts to reduce their environmental impact. That number is up from the previous year's survey, in which only 14% of CEOs said they felt such concerns.

This year, however, another factor is in play. The 2008 survey shows the high cost of energy is among the most pressing reason for changing how data centers and computers are cooled.

"We don't see many or indeed any companies that are hesitant to explore green IT projects," IDC analyst Vernon Turner wrote in an e-mail on this topic. "In fact, the scary thing is where to start, and it may be that reason why there is somewhat a feeling of lost souls. There has been a lot of marketing by the IT vendor community around green, and I think that CEOs and CIOs are 'green-washed' by it."

Cooling computers and other data and tech apparatus using natural air is earth-friendly as well as pocketbook friendly; two areas where expertise combines to be extra important in this New Year.

Christmas 2008 is now past; the Happy New Year of 2009 Greenifying your business lies ahead. That may mean that Job One at the top of this (usually quiet) week's list is disposing of the holiday tree. And your options can be very green, indeed! Recycling, or treecycling, is easy and convenient, whether you are taking down your business or home tree; work in an industrial park or strip mall; live in a house with curbside yard waste collection service or a multi-tenant building.

Last year, recyclers kept over 800 tons of Christmas trees out of landfills, and this year, with many convenient options, even more could be collected.

Christmas trees are recycled by being ground up in huge tub grinders. The resulting material becomes mulch and compost. Because recycled trees are generally put to use in making landscaping and garden products, flocked trees can not be recycled. Some of the ingredients used to flock the tree can harm the quality of compost. Also, before recycling your tree, remove tinsel, lights, ornaments, rod supports, and the stand.

And do be considerate of recyclers. The grinders that turn trees into mulch are powerful, heavy machines, but even they have their limits. Their huge jaws pulverize branches and even some stumps, but they can be choked by items like metal Christmas tree stands. Metal Christmas tree stands or rebar remaining in tree trunks can jam grinders, stall engines, break off grinder teeth, or fly out of grinders which poses a threat to workers. Make sure you provide the cleanest, most natural tree possible for pick-up by recyclers.

You'll also need to check with your local community for information about recycling trees. Some cities provide pick-up for businesses, but not all. And various trash haulers have different requirements for the proper way to recycle trees to ensure smooth loading and increase available space in collection trucks. For example, some cities ask residents not to put Christmas trees in yard waste containers. Instead, they want residents to cut in half any trees longer than 6 feet, and place the trees next to refuse and recycling bins.

Most local governments and their trash disposal services want to help residential and commercial clients to recycle their trees. It does help maximize space in the landfill, and provide valuable mulching materials that help Greenify homes and businesses far into the year 2009 and beyond.